Fads and Facts - Saddlecloths and Gel Pads

Personal taste again? - asks Kay Hastilow, Master Saddler and Master Saddler Fitter - of this much-discussed subject, about which she shares her decades of experience below...

Many of the modern cloths and numnahs have very attractive piping and binding around the edges and lots of bling. This is no problem so long as the cloth is big enough so that at no time does the saddle come into contact with the piping at the back or, in the case of a numnah, around the sides. Often, this is okay, but when you get to the girth slots the piping runs under the girth, making an area of pressure that will be most uncomfortable. Please always check that this area is clear of additional edgings.

Many cloths have fastenings from the front of the pad to the Ds of the saddle – a much better option that having the tabs come from under the saddle and back to the girth straps. Once again, pressure. Some will say that with the fastening at the front of the saddle the cloth runs back under the saddle. Often the cause of this is the material that the cloth is made from, being very high in, or totally made from, a synthetic material. Cotton, either pure cotton or a very high cotton content is what is needed, but of course these are more expensive. The bonus from this is that they will almost certainly have a nicer shape and sit so much better on the horse.

‘Gel’ pads are all the rage at the moment, with a bit of fluff around the back. Unless absolutely necessary to prevent excessive slippage please do not use them, especially on jumping horses. They grip the skin meaning that it can’t 'flow' under the saddle, as happens with a more standard pad. Testing has shown a marked reduction of performance in the horse when using these, so weigh up your priorities. “Without this pad the saddle slips to an unacceptable extent. With it, it stays in place”. If that isn’t your reply, then don’t use it! Oh, and as a shock absorber? Most of the high pressures occur under the front part of the saddle and are fleeting with a well-fitting saddle. The pressure relief you believe you achieve may well be counteracted by the holding and pulling of the skin beneath it. THINK about what you are doing by using these products!

Stirrup leathers.  For your preference surely?  Perhaps not. The fashion at the moment is for hide covered web which has the advantage of not being too thick, but heavy stirrup leather butt or buffalo leathers tend to be bulky and will put pressure through the recessed stirrup bar area into the horse’s sides. NOT what we are wanting.

Whilst we're on the subject of tack ...

Bits are now being thought about much more and there are some excellent bitting experts out there that you can consult. Do check their qualifications though. We have more than enough self-styled 'experts' on many topics in the horse world, most without qualification or, more importantly, insurance.

Fashion is a great driver in the equestrian market and bits go in fads as much as anything that we use, but please take a moment to look into his mouth before deciding what to use on your horse. The width of the jaw, positioning of the teeth, size and thickness of the tongue and the shape of the roof of his mouth will all influence what he will find acceptable and what he will not. Perhaps you will need that qualified bitting expert.

These are just some of the many items that we use on our horses with little thought. Please consider every item that you use with or on your horse, study available research into the product and make your choices in an informed way and not because your pal Brenda or your trainer Richard uses this, that or the other 'whatever'.. Good, repeatable research using pressure testing, gait analysis and film can show you so much. Why not benefit from it?

Kay Hastilow’s Saddle Fitting Know How For Riders and Trainers is a two part video series, giving a fascinating, practical insight into saddles, correct fit and common problems. It will give you a basic understanding of many factors that affect the choice of saddle for a horse and rider. alongside helping you to work more closely with your fully qualified and insured saddle fitter.

Each video is less than the cost of a good quality saddle cloth - or a lesson - and every rider and trainer will find them a helpful addition to the library. 
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How Serious Is Saddle Slippage?

Much has been written over the last couple of years about saddle slippage. There has been excellent work undertaken by Sue Dyson, MA, VetMD, PhDDEO FRCVS and her team at The Animal Health Trust. The conclusions seem to have been understood as ‘if a saddle slips over to one side, there is almost certainly an underlying lameness'.

Master Saddler and Master Saddler Fitter Kay Hastilow sheds more light on the discussions ...

All well and good, but let’s just think about this. I have been told by several eminent veterinarians that very few horses are truly one hundred percent sound. Certainly, in my 50 years as a saddler I have found this to be true. Most horses on a run-up or when ridden may show a slight asymmetry of pace, length of stride, elevation of each limb or straightness of movement. This is why saddle fitters should watch the horse move. Not so that we can ‘condemn’ the horse as being lame, but to note and bear in mind these slight abnormalities as they would impact on the way that the saddle fits.

However, there are many other reasons why a saddle can move off to one side. Let’s consider a few of these. 

Of course, the saddle might not be straight. ‘Twisted ’ trees are actually quite uncommon, but panels are often not in straight or level, either at the front or at the back. You can often see that when you look from the underside through the panel that it is not in line with the centre and side rails of the tree. In this case, of course the saddle will sit to one side. The flocking may not be even both sides, or not corresponding to the shape of the back. Uneven girth straps and webs can alter the way a saddle sits. There are many different reasons why the saddle won’t sit straight to start with. 

Many horses are asymmetric in the shoulders. It may be that one is higher than the other, more pronounced, or one is set further back than on the opposite side. This is generally skeletal and cannot be altered by working the horse in a certain way. If the saddle is placed a little too forward, this will push the saddle over to one side at the back. In actual fact, if I could just get people to realise that most of them put the saddle too far forward and get them to set it just a little further back, many of the fitting problems that we see would disappear overnight!

It may be that the shoulders are even, but development behind here is uneven. Often, horses have not built up so much on one side as the other. Usually, but not always, it is the left (near) side that is less developed and there are many theories as to why this should be so. Obviously, if there is less development on the left, the saddle will drop into this hollow and sit to the right at the front. Many feel that they want to lift the right front to balance it, but it is almost always the left front that you would add to in this case, either with shims or flock. What action the saddler would take would depend on the age of the horse, the time in his present ownership and the work he is doing. If it is a young horse in a new home where he will be worked well by a good rider, there is a good chance that the muscle can be built up on this side, but an older horse who mainly hacks out, with the rider almost always rising on the same diagonal at trot and allowing the horse to lead on his favoured leg in canter is unlikely to change, and so the best solution would be to add flock to the opposite side to the way the saddle moves.

Muscle development right through a horse’s back can be unlevel side to side (this is probably a result of a slight lameness, but the result is that the saddle moves)  You may wonder why your saddle fitter takes a good look at your horse’s conformation, does a ‘back assessment’ and watches him move. It is to find these facts out so that they, and through them you, are aware of any potential difficulties that may arise with the fitting. If your saddle fitter doesn’t do these assessments and just comes in and starts putting saddles on, I would question his or her ability. I call these people saddle sellers, not fitters, as recognising differences such as those mentioned above and their likely influence are essential to be able to achieve a satisfactory fit.

Having seen the effect such conformational or development factors can have on the fit, let’s consider the rider. The rider that is straight and balanced is a rarity. Even those that look okay are seen to be slightly ‘squint’ when filmed wearing the Visualise’ jacket from Centaur Biomechanics. This excellent tool has stripes of fluorescent tape strategically placed on the front, back and sleeves. You can see how straight the rider is with the naked eye, but you can see more clearly when you film the rider from the front, back and side. You can replay and freeze frame where you are not sure. The deviation from straight and centre can be slight or marked, and can really affect the way a saddle sits. Of course, if a ‘squint’ rider uses a saddle for a while, that will alter it so that it will move to one side even when others ride in it. 

Take a look at yourself. If you ride down a straight road and a friend films from behind, you will see just how straight you are sitting. You might be in for a shock!! You would be surprised, I think, to find out how many people ride with uneven length stirrup leathers, either by design or ignorance, and many riders will have far more weight in one foot than the other. Try this. As you are riding along, half close your eyes. (Make sure that you are somewhere safe when you do this!)  Think about the weight in the stirrups. I bet one has much more weight in it than the other.

Hands and shoulders are another influence. Rein gauges used in testing have shown that very few riders have an even contact with their horse’s mouth. Add to that many ride with one shoulder higher or more forward then the other, and the imbalance can send everything off centre as the horse tries to cope with this.

A rider's legs are another problem. It is not uncommon for a rider to have one leg further forward than the other, with the knee sitting more forward or higher in the knee grip on this side. The lower leg may or may not be in the same position both sides, and the hips and seat of the rider are rarely completely square. All of these ‘rider faults’ can take the saddle over to one side, or unbalance the horse, so that in his effort to keep balanced he moves the saddle. 

Dealing with the above problems are everyday occurrences for saddle fitters. Is the problem solvable? Can the rider straighten out? Is a trip to the physio for both horse and rider necessary? It’s no point straightening one half of the equation if the other half is still squint - and any changes made to either will take time to bed in.

If it is something that is not going to be solved by training or treatment, there are many things that the saddle fitter can do to hold the saddle straight. The addition of an extra girth strap in the correct position, adjustment to the flocking in the saddle or the use of shims and other work can correct the saddle slip, and remember, whilst we would all like our horses and their riders to be completely straight and square, this is unlikely to happen. It is also unlikely to improve while the saddle is drifting off to one side, as the muscle will not re-build whilst there is excess pressure to that area. The saddle needs to be straight for this to happen.

The first video in Kay Hastilow's Saddle Fitting Know How For Riders and Trainers looks at conformation and its influence on saddle fitting, the movement of the horse, the different types of saddle trees, panel types, positioning of girth straps and how they can all influence a fit.

The second video explains how a trained and qualified saddle fitter will assess a saddle for straightness, soundness and safety, along with static and dynamic recognition of a good fit and how the balance of the saddle influences the rider. It also explores why saddles move to one side and looks at the influence of the rider.

Available to stream and download anytime, each video costs less than the price of a good quality saddlecloth at just £35.

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